Translation in Arabic language and literature
Ali Sayadani; Saman Rahimkhani; Somayeh Aghamohammadi Ahle Iman
Abstract
During different decades, language and translation have a wide and mutual relationship, and translation has achieved many advances by using the science of linguistics and considering linguistic contexts in establishing dynamic and concrete communication with the audience. Christian Nord (1977), a theoretician ...
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During different decades, language and translation have a wide and mutual relationship, and translation has achieved many advances by using the science of linguistics and considering linguistic contexts in establishing dynamic and concrete communication with the audience. Christian Nord (1977), a theoretician in the field of translation studies, has improved the communication between the speaker and the listener or the writer and the reader by presenting the elements of her specific language function model. Based on the analytical-descriptive method, the present study aims to investigate Reza Ameri’s and Ataullah Mohajerani's translations of Season of Migration to the North based on Christian Nord's model in order to achieve the level of reflection of the linguistic functions of Nord's model and their impact in the translations and determine the quality level of translators’ performance. The result of the research shows that Reza Ameri’s translation has been most reflected in terms of referential and expressive functions, and also his performance has been more acceptable compared to Ataullah Mohajerani in the translation of the novel "Season of Migration to the North".Keywords: Linguistics, Function of Language, Christian Nord, Reza Ameri, Ataullah Mohajerani.IntroductionLanguage and translation are closely related to each other in such a way that by neglecting language and related sciences, such a puzzle will remain incomplete and the connected links of this orderly collection will be separated. A group of researchers have studied the nature of linguistic elements and components and have come to the conclusion that the presence of linguistic elements with cultural meaning in texts is a symbol of the interweaving and interaction of culture and language. Linguistic patterns presented by many theorists have always made the cultural and semantic connections between different languages, especially their audiences, stable. Christian Nord's model deals with a new view of the functions of language in the field of translation studies and clearly explains it by introducing four language functions (referential function, expressive function, appellative function, and phatic function). The translator's attention to these four important tools, in the first stage, causes a detailed reflection and analysis of real or unreal topics and phenomena according to the nature or relevant example (characteristics of informing, meta-linguistic, guidance, educational) in the target text that the lack of attention to cultural values in the translation of these topics causes problems in the translation.In the second stage, it reflects the aesthetic characteristics of the source text, and in the third stage, it causes the transfer of cognitive stylistic features of the infinitive text, and in the fourth stage, it leads to the explicit transfer of the author's feelings or to be in tune with him during the translation process.The Arabic novel Season of Migration to the North is one of the literary genres and is among the top hundred Arabic novels of the 20th century in Damascus in 2001. The main part of the story begins with mysterious and unfortunate events and many highs and lows. By criticizing two translations of the novel Season of Migration to the North based on Christian Nord's (1977) model, the present research tries to pay close attention to the quality of the translations as well as the amount of interference of the aforementioned linguistic elements.Literature ReviewIn the field of translation criticism, there have been researches that have helped the authors of this research in writing this section, it should be noted that so far no research has been done in the field of applying Nord’s approach to the content of the novel Season of Migration to the North.Afzali, Ali, and Maedeh Akbar Karkasi (1400) in the article Investigation of the Cultural Categories of the Arabic Novel based on the Theory of Lawrence Venotti, have concluded that the translator (in the analysis of the novel Ors al-Zein) removed the linguistic and cultural differences in order to achieve a smooth and fluent translation and provided an acceptable translation by using the element of localization.Madani, Akram, and Javad Asghari (1400) in the article The Application of Newmark's Theory in the Transfer of the Unit of Culture in the Translation of the Arabic Novel, indicate that in the translation of these novels (Miramar, Zaqaq al-Mudaq, Sarsara Fuq al-Nil, Mosm al-Hijrah El Al-Shamal (Season of Migration to the North), Ars Elzin) the methods of transfer, localization, and cultural equivalent have been most used in the transfer of the cultural unit.Masbouq, Seyyed Mehdi, and Solmaz Ghafari (1400) in the article The Effect of the Translator's Semantic Horizon on the Target Text in the Light of the Aesthetic Theory of Reception, a Case Study of Three Translations of the Novel “Season of Migration to the North”, concluded that a reader who reacts to white spaces and gaps, interprets and updates the text in a natural way, and provides fast reading according to the rules of the target language, can overcome the aesthetics of the target text.Yousefzadeh Arbat, Hassan (2015) in the article Investigation of the Role of Culture and Language in Intercultural Communication, concluded that individual characteristics play a decisive role in the success or failure of intercultural communication and knowing one's own culture and the culture of the audience, mastering linguistic subtleties and individual characteristics are three determining components in intercultural communication.MethodologyThe Arabic novel Season of Migration to the North is a novel in which the transmission of cultural elements in the text requires a lot of precision and skill, and Christian Nord's theory can be appropriate as a precise and practical language model in conveying the most sensitive aspects of the field of translation and especially the criticism and analysis of the two translations under study,Therefore, in this article, two translations of the novel Season of Migration to the North by Reza Ameri and Ataullah Mohajerani are analyzed according to the components of Christian Noord's model (1977) in order to evaluate the degree of involvement of each element in the translations, and the performance of the two translators in the explicit and accurate transfer of grammatical, cultural and linguistic elements from the source text to the target text have been reviewed. It is worth mentioning that the research method in this sample is descriptive-analytical.Purpose of the StudyThe importance of the present article in the discussion of the application of Nord’s approach in the content of the present novel is clearly shown. The language construction in the mentioned novel implies the use of referential, expressive, appellative, and phatic functions as elements of linguistic functions which are clearly manifested in the comparative and case translation of the present novel. It should be said that the aim of the research was to examine the level of reflection of the linguistic functions of Nord’s model and their effect in the investigated translations, as well as to determine the quality level of each translator's performance in the form of functional speech groups.ConclusionIn this research, by examining the basis of Christian Nord's theory on the content of two translations of the novel Season of Migration to the North by Reza Ameri and Ataullah Mohajerani, the following results have been obtained.Reza Ameri with a function-oriented attitude and paying attention to the symbols, cultural and literary values of the two languages, as well as observing the grammatical principles of the target language and replacing commonly used equivalents for words, phrases, and sentences, especially preventing the prolongation of speech and reflecting the linguistic elements of Nord's point of view in the target text, has a more successful performance compared to Ataullah Mohajerani, especially in the elements of the referential and expressive functions.Ataullah Mohajerani in the majority of sections with a relatively balanced attitude and with a relatively strong dependence on the grammatical structure and semantic aspects of the infinitive text and the lack of selection of appropriate equivalents in the target text, which has caused the main author's message to weaken, not only did not fully reflect the main axis of the discussion (the linguistic elements of the mentioned point of view), but in many cases it caused ambiguity in the words and message of the main author, for the audience of the target language, which prevented translators from observing the two traditional and fundamental principles, i.e. observing the principle of faithfulness to the message of the infinitive text and creating a balance between the two languages.In this research, the translator Reza Ameri, taking into account the rules of linguistics and the effectiveness and knowledge of applied linguistics (the field of sociology and neurology) as a branch of linguistics, completed his task as a successful translator in the translation of the mentioned novel.
